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hunter s. thompson by Alex Burns (alex@disinfo.com) - March 04, 2001 |
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Gonzo journalism is a style of reporting based on William Faulkner's idea that the best fiction is far more true than any kind of journalism - and the best journalists have always known this. Which is not to say that fiction is necessarily 'more true' than journalism - or vice versa - but that both 'fiction' and 'journalism' are artificial categories; and that both forms, at their best, are only two different means to the same end. Legendary for his drug-fuelled Sadeian excesses, Hunter S. Thompson's pioneering Gonzo reportage changed journalism forever. Thompson's daring study Hells Angels (New York: Random House, 1967) captured their brooding menace and established him as the most subversive voice in the US New Journalism movement, which combined the craft of literature with news gathering techniques to highlight how Objectivity was structured bias in reality. His Counter-culture stories cast the die for Generation X culture-jammers. His landmark book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (New York: Warner Books, 1971), featuring stunning satirical cartoons by Ralph Steadman, happened by accident. Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 (San Francisco: Straight Arrow Books, 1973) remains the most incisive coverage of the battle between Democrat George McGovern and Republican Richard M. Nixon for the hearts and minds of America. By the mid-1970s, Thompson had reached rock star status for Rolling Stone magazine, and the pressures of fame took its toll, as myth became reality. Throughout the Reagan-dominated 1980s, Thompson focused upon anthologies: the excellent Great Shark Hunt (New York: Summit Books, 1979) which collected his best magazine articles, Generation of Swine (New York: Vintage Books, 1988), and Songs of the Doomed (New York: Summit Books, 1990). Thomspon wallowed in the greed-driven depravity of a generation betraying its Woodstock Nation dreams. But the poor film adaption Where the Buffalo Roam (1980) didn't help his reputation. Better Than Sex (New York: Ballantine Books, 1993) attempted to offer an insider's view of Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign, but Thompson was too remote from the real action. Terry Gilliam's film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) signalled that the increasingly hyper-real world had finally grasped Thompson's surrealistic visions. The publication of The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967 (New York: Ballantine Books, 1997) letters collection, and the lost novel The Rum Diary (New York: Scribners, 1999) raise serious questions regarding the extent to which Thompson's thwarted novelistic ambitions are really journalism. Fear an Loathing in America: The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist, 1968-1976 (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2000) revealed his Gonzo transformation into president Richard M. Nixon's shadow. Thompson showed us all, in the end, that it didn't really matter. |
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Dr. Hunter S. Thompson Ralph Steadman The Great Thompson Hunt Rolling Stone.com The Young Hunter S. Thompson American Graffiti: Hunter S. Thompson The Rum Diary Webring Hunter S. Thompson: The Champion of Fun Film and Loathing in Las Vegas Erowid Psychoactive Vaults: Experiences Levity: Hunter S. Thompson Fear and Loathing with Hunter S. Thompson London Student Issue 7: Hunter S. Thompson Harry's Links Where The Buffalo Roam@IMDB Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas@IMDB Hunter S. Thompson Disinformation Dossier on Todd Fahey: Gonzo Reality Smasher |
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